AI-based tool to end ‘katni chhatni’ woes of farmers
BHUBANESWAR: The ‘katni chhatni’ woes of farmers in Odisha are likely to be over soon. After announcing to provide the highest support price of Rs 3,100 per quintal of paddy from the procurement season beginning in November, the state government is all set to take the help of artificial intelligence (AI) to ensure that the farmers are not harassed over the fair average quality (FAQ).
Sources said the Cooperation department will soon equip the mandis with an AI-based automated foodgrains analyser for assessing various parameters of grains, including paddy. AI assessment will facilitate grain quality checking by eliminating seller and buyer risks.
The notorious practice of ‘katni-chhatni’ (price reduction based on grain quality assessment) through an alleged nexus between the rice millers and supply officials has been a bane for the farmers across the state. Mandis force them to deduct four to six kg from one quintal of paddy on the plea of husk, straw, discoloured grains and moisture content.
While grading is necessary for determining appropriate quality which results in better price realisation by farmers, officials said, the illegal practice of deducting paddy on the pretext of maintaining FAQ will not be tolerated anymore.
Secretary of Cooperation department Rajesh Pravakar Patil said the procedure used so far in determining grain impurities is mostly manual and consumes a lot of time affecting the procurement and marketing process. “We have decided to use AI-based assessment in a departure from the traditional visual inspections and manual processes. It will make the sampling process faster and more accurate, saving time and energy and assuring the farmers the best price for their produce,” he said.
The state government has set a target to procure 71 lakh tonnes of paddy in the kharif marketing season 2024-25. Regulated market committees (RMCs) have been established across all districts to facilitate procurement through 4,036 paddy procurement centres (PPCs).
“It has been decided to equip around 200 PPCs, including all 109 large PPCs with the AI-based grain analyser in the first phase. These advanced devices will help analyse the moisture content of agricultural commodities, so that non-FAQ produce can be converted to FAQ standard and sold at appropriate price benefitting the farmers. The device will be available at all centres in phases,” said Patil.